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Ballymena man hoping to be a cut above the rest in WorldSkills competition

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Ballymena man hoping to be a cut above the rest in WorldSkills competition

Monday 2 October 2017

The Mayor of Mid and East Antrim is urging the people of the Borough to get behind Ballymena man Adam Ferguson as he heads to Abu Dhabi to compete in the WorldSkills competition.

The 21 year old landscape gardener works at Hillsborough Castle and is a former CAFRE college student.

Adam is one of four NI competitors going for gold in the Middle East as part of Team UK. WorldSkills is the largest vocational skills competition and will see young people from 77 countries and regions compete in 51 skill competitions.

Wishing Adam luck, the Mayor Councillor Paul Reid said, “I want to congratulate Adam, and the other competitors from Northern Ireland, who will no doubt put up stiff competition on a world stage. It is already a great achievement to be selected as part of the UK team but I have no doubt we will hear of more fantastic achievements to come from Adam and his teammates.

“WordSkills is a globally renowned skills competition showcasing and inspiring world-class excellence in skills. For Ballymena to have a representative in such a high calibre competition, it really is something special and I wish Adam all the best.”

Adam said he’s looking forward to the competition, “I can’t wait to get out there and get stuck in. I was in China last month for team preparations and although I’m looking forward to it, I’m still a bit nervous as it’s such a huge platform to compete on.

“Earlier this year I competed in Sweden and China, so now I’m looking forward to putting what I’ve learned into practice for the biggest competition for me this year. I am very lucky and honoured to be a part of the UK team and really hope we can bring home some titles.”

The finals are held every two years when over a thousand competitors gather for four days of competition in different skill areas, ranging from engineering and construction through to creative arts, hospitality, floristry and landscape gardening.